Uncovering the Local Dark Matter Density in Axion Dark Matter Scenarios

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

This project has been exceptionally fruitful for producing important results. The main results so far are that we have uncovered two novel experimental signatures of large-density clumps of dark matter in the solar system:1) we proposed a space mission with on-board atomic clocks as a direct probe of small, dense bound states around the Sun which from from axions (published in Nature Astronomy, 7 (2023) 1, 113-121); and2) we set a completely new constraint on the dark matter density in the solar system using high-precision asteroid tracking data (under review by Nature Astronomy).These proposals prove that small-scale dark matter overdensities can be directly probed; in the future, it may be possible to expand on this work to precisely measure the dark matter density in the solar system.We also have made significant progress in understanding the mechanism of formation of axion bound states, including those bound to the Sun. These bound states can significantly modify the local dark matter density and give rise to novel observables in experiment. Our mechanism will provide a precise experimental target for direct searches, both those conducted on Earth as well as future space missions.